Related

EDMONTON - Veteran Edmonton politician Thomas Lukaszuk announced Thursday he will run for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party, casting himself as an anti-establishment underdog working for everyday Albertans.

At his long-awaited campaign launch, the four-time MLA for Edmonton-Castle Downs set out to establish a David-versus-Goliath narrative, pitting his own grassroots campaign against that of lawyer and banker Jim Prentice, the front-runner and former federal cabinet minister with nearly four dozen elected MLAs in his corner.

“I’m am not an establishment candidate; that simply never has been and never will be my style — it is not the size of the dog in the fight, it is the size of the fight in the dog,” Lukaszuk said Thursday outside the Credo Coffee shop in Edmonton’s tiny hipster enclave along 104th Street downtown.

Lukaszuk, 45, said he met with Premier Dave Hancock Thursday morning to tender his resignation as minister of Jobs, Skills Training and Labour. He said he will pick up his nomination forms Thursday, collect the required 500 signatures and submit them by the May 30 deadline. The entry fee is $50,000.

He will also be running against Ric McIver, longtime Calgary alderman and first-time MLA for Calgary-Hays, who worked as transportation minister before resigning to run in the race.

Lukaszuk is the first Tory from Edmonton to enter the race.

First elected in 2001, Lukaszuk has held some of the highest-profile positions in government, including a stint as deputy premier to ousted premier Alison Redford. He has come under heavy fire for some of his decisions, including a move in 2013 to cut $147 million from post-secondary institutions.

“It’s not lost on Albertans that there’s a pattern that whenever tough decisions had to be made in government throughout the last number of years, I was put in those (departments) to deliver,” he said.

“The fact is that I am capable of making difficult decisions. … I will own up to what I believed in, and I will own up to what I have done, but I will also clarify in this campaign what my personal vision would have been,” he said.

He said he routinely stood up when he disagreed with steps the Redford government was taking.

“I was the first one to come out and say there was an issue with entitlement, I was the first one to say that this government has lost its moral authority to govern,” Lukaszuk said.

Lukaszuk played up his working-class roots, noting he immigrated from Poland with his family and came to Edmonton in the back of a 1972 Plymouth Valiant. “We started with nothing,” he said.

“You will not see any of the perennial consultants or others hanging around my campaign,” Lukaszuk said in an obvious attack on Prentice, whose campaign has been tied to Calgary communications firm Navigator, which has deep connections with the long-governing Tories. The firm is helmed by Jaime Watt and Randy Dawson, both of whom worked on the 2012 election campaign that made Alison Redford premier.

“You will see me running a very independent, grassroots campaign,” Lukaszuk said. “You will see Albertans of all profiles and backgrounds volunteering on my campaign.”

He said he will release his platform in stages after filing his paperwork.

Observers said none of the candidates — neither Lukaszuk, Prentice nor McIver — can legitimately claim to be outsiders, and questioned whether Lukaszuk’s anti-establishment narrative will stand up under public scrutiny.

“Anti-establishment? My God, he’s on executive council, he’s in the thick of things. He has been deputy premier — in no way does that fit the usual description of an outsider,” Mount Royal political scientist Keith Brownsey said. “There’s a populist element to the party, and he’s trying to appeal to that, and he’s setting himself up in opposition to someone he considers a very inside candidate, Jim Prentice.”

Brownsey said all three candidates are simply working to distance themselves from former Tory premiers Ed Stelmach and Alison Redford.

“People are running away from Alison Redford, they’re trying to change the narrative, to show they will bring something new to Alberta politics.

“We don’t know what happened to Alison Redford yet ... but that was a spectacular fail, we’ve seen nothing like it in Canadian history.”

Premier Dave Hancock said he is pleased to see candidates debating but won’t take part in the leadership race.

“I think it’s exciting that we have candidates talking about the future of the party and the future of the province. My job is to work on government in the meantime,” Hancock said.

“My job is to be premier for the next four months, I’m going to enjoy doing that, I’m going to do that exclusively, and I’m not going to be engaged in the leadership process.”

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.